HAIR UP AND SKIRTS DOWN. by Marisa Masterson

Imagine with me a country miss. She is living in the very modern time of the 1870s with its wonderful new inventions like the telephone, phonograph, the typewriter, and the lightbulb.

This young lady has finished eighth grade and is graduating. She is done with school since no high school is close enough to attend and there is no reason for her to continue on. She knows plenty, as her pa told her.

Oh that exciting day. The girl can finally put her hair in a bun. No more hair to her shoulders, though she still has the bangs that became popular for girls to wear in the 1870s. 

Yes, now she is a grown up. School days are done. Her short hems are a thing of the past as well.

A girl in the nineteenth century would wear skirts that eneded at mid-calf or slightly shorter. When she was considered an adult, those hems dropped to cover tempting ankles.

Of course, a farm woman or someone expected to work wore slightly shorter hems. Those would brush the tops of her shoes, still long enough to show her as an adult. But these were for around home. When she went to town or to church our miss puts on a shirtwaist and a skirt that brushes the top of her shiny boots.

Women on the Prairie and especially those traveling with a wagon train were known also to wore their skirts shorter. Often these were almost as high as a child's. This was done to avoid tangling them in the grass or setting the hem on fire when cooking over an open fire.

But not our miss. She will stay on the farm until her beau proposes. Then she will move to his place, probably another farm. 

Typical of the time, our young lady will not move far in her lifetime. She is not one of the adventurers who seek free land. No, she is happy in her community.\

Others are not so fortunate to live out their lives amongst people they have always known. Take Christiana for example. She is forced to travel the Santa Fe Trail--

A grumpy man meets a strong-minded woman. You bet the sparks are flying!

Christiana Mallory has no choice but to become Moody Dutton's cook. Her sister insists they find a way to join a wagon train headed south. Patience is determined to retrieve a map showing where their pa buried gold coins. To do that, they must reach Colorado.

When Patience immediately marries Moody's cousin, Christiana is determined not to become a wife. She holds Moody at a distance, fighting with him so that she will not give in to her growing attraction.

Only, when danger threatens her sister's life does Christiana recognize her growing desire to stay with Moody. He shows her how deeply he desires them to be a couple. Can she commit to living her life in isolation on a ranch?